Installment #44 Epilogue

Installment #44

 Epilogue

Jack and Leroy watched as the body was brought out and placed in the back of the ambulance. As the tow truck secured the Jeep, Jack remembered the black Jeep that turned into an obscure road 30 minutes up the road. When he mentioned it to Leroy, he recalled the same black Jeep following them down to the farm. Perhaps Marshall’s keys would be found there. And Ambrose. And Jeffery. And some where in Denver, Jennifer would be thanking her lucky stars that she was born a lesbian and had never even looked at her boss “that way”.

A man in Brattleboro, Vermont was boarding a plane for Stapleton International Airport in Denver, Colorado to assist in looking for his lost son.  Or so he thought. When he landed he would find that the lost son had been found and the other son that was found was now completely lost, forever. Knowing that the men would be down from the mountain soon, Meg got the Bunn ready and poured the water through.


Her mind flashed to that morning when she had made coffee. She remembered reaching for the panel that was in the doggie door.  She jumped when the door bell rang.

Kevin gave her a hug.  “It will take time, mom.” She hurried to the door and was surprised to find Fred there, and it looked like he had trimmed his beard! He held his hat in his hands and smiled timidly at Meg. A simple man, she thought. A very simple man. Like her Tommy. Meg smiled and held the door open wider as he entered and she looked into his very dark eyes; Kevin’s eyes. She realized that he was also freshly showered and carried the scent of the great out doors. The fresh clean scent of…… Irish Spring.

The end....for now.

Installment #42 Kevin

Installment #42

Kevin

Jack quickly caught Kevin up to speed with what he knew, which was not much. Meg was missing. A man she had planned on meeting in Denver was missing. Someone had hacked into her email. That person lived either in Denver or near here. Or both. What did Kevin know? Nothing. He had not even known about the man in Denver. Mom had been a widow for over three years now, so it did not surprise him. Could the man in Denver have done something to Mom?
No.  Jeffery Purcell was missing first.
Had Meg seemed different in any way when he last spoke to her?
No, she was always just mom.

Suddenly the door burst open and Leroy and Ferrel hurried across the yard. “Jack! You are not going to believe this! The computer in Denver belongs to a man named Marshall Purcell! Marshall Purcell is Jeffery Purcell’s twin brother. They have been estranged for years. The father is in Brattleboro, Vermont.  He has not seen either son in several years.  No contact at all with Marshall since before the mother died.  Marshall never went back for the funeral. The father remarried and moved to Vermont or moved to Vermont and then remarried, but shortly after the marriage Jeffery wrote him out of his life.”

Jack frowned as he digested this bit of news.  “This is just getting worse.  Have someone pick up Marshall Purcell and take him in for questioning.  He is going to have some explaining to do about hacking Parkers’ computer.”  He turned to Kevin.  “How does your mom know Marshall Purcell? Who is he?”
Kevin shook his head. “ I have no clue. I never heard her mention him at all. What does he do?  Mom never goes to Denver unless it is business. What does this Purcell guy do?”

Ferrel glanced at his notes. “He is a stock broker. Quite successful. Your mom have stock?”
 “Yeah, but I bought it through my broker. I keep her portfolio and she does not buy anything any more. We are just kind of riding the sinking ship and hoping it makes a comeback.”

Who in the hell was this guy and why was he spying on his mother?  Mom would surely have told him if she were interested in someone.  And she would have told him if she had someone playing inside her computer.  Well, she would have told him had she known it. Leroy disconnected from his call on the cell phone and turned to face the group.  He was very solemn.

“Well, they sent a team to Purcell’s office.  He was not there, but Jennifer, the office manager was and she was quite helpful.  Seems Purcell left the office on Thursday morning and has not been heard from since.  When she went to transfer money from the main account into the payroll account, she found there was nothing to transfer. Seems Marshall Purcell had already transferred it somewhere.  She went to his apartment to confront him, but that is gone too.  Nothing there.  Like he fell off the face of the earth.”

 Kevin sat down on the small patch of grass by the back porch.  Immediately Daisy and Elvira were in his lap.  He laughed as he saw Icarus, Miss Independent cat, watching the dogs.  These three animals had the same disposition as Meg,  all love and happiness.  He stared at the mountain.  What secrets did it hold?  He and Greg had known something was amiss, but never dreamed it would lead to this.  Mom was way to trusting. Meeting a guy on the Internet was absurd.  Making plans to meet him in Denver was even more out of character.  He watched as the fingerprint guy came out and walked to his van. Jack intercepted him. Kevin watched them with their heads together. Goodbyes were said and Jack approached Kevin.

No good news there.  Says a preliminary turned up a lot of prints, but they all seem to be accounted for and he does not have much hope.”

Somehow Kevin was not surprised by this.  He suddenly felt like he was smothering.  “Jack, I am going for a short walk.  Probably up the mountain a ways.  I need to call California and the reception here is not the best.”
Jack nodded.  “ I hear you buddy.   Here is my cell phone number if you need me or see anything unusual just give me a jingle.” Kevin slipped the card into his cell phone case, nodded at the dogs to stay and headed north, up the mountain in the direction Meg had refused to go just a week earlier.  The dogs watched him go a ways and then settled down in the grass and the cat lay in the grass twitching her tail and contemplating a nap.

Installment #40 Jack

Installment #40

Jack

Jack hurried to the first sheriff car that pulled on the scene. Leroy! Computer expert and hopefully the man with the answer. Formalities.  “Jack, I want you to meet Ferrel Buford. Ferrel has been a very big help. Has all this fancy equipment and lots of info coming over the wire on the way up here.”

Jack shook the proffered hand as he turned toward the house.
“Pleased to meet you, Jack. I think I have what you need.” He pulled a small notebook out of his pocket. “Well, at least it is sure going to help. But first, I got to pee. Some jerk driving like a maniac about ran us off the road. Damn hairpin curves scare the shit out of me anyway.”
Jack indicated the door Ferrel needed and poured coffee in a cup and offered it to Leroy. Ferrel returned very quickly and took the coffee Jack offered him.
“Now. The hacker is in Denver, but he is also around here close. Unless there are two of them, which I can not see, but there are two computers. The first one is in an office complex in downtown Denver. I have my company working on narrowing that one down.  Should have an answer on that in about an hour.  So the other one is up here on this mountain, but it is wireless and operates on a “hot wire” off of a satellite. Those are really hard to pinpoint.”
Leroy chimed in, “Is there any way we can get information on the people that live up here on this mountain? You know, where and if they work.  If they go into Denver regular. Things like that?”
But Leroy and Jack both knew the mountain backwoods code. Live here, do what you want, bother nobody and you become invisible.
“Oh, I got hold of the kid, Kevin. He is flying into Stapleton about right now.  George will pick him up and the helicopter will shuttle him down here. Don’t know what good he will be since he lives clear out in California, but he might know something, and it is his mother. Maybe she confided something to him that will give us a clue.”

Jack turned back to Ferrel. “Show me what you have. I sure hope we can get something out of it.” Ferrel opened the note book.
 “Red stars are on the Denver computer. Black are on the mountain computer. He started pinging in on her about 5 months ago. Not often. Just occasionally. Goes in, checks her emails, reads them, marks them new, and leaves. Cannot see where he does anything else at all, but he sure is keeping tabs on the redranger.” Jack stared at the dates.

“Do you by any chance have copies of the emails that were sent on these days? Especially….” He stopped as Ferrel stood and went to the car, returning with a folder which he handed to Jack. Quickly he found the one he wanted.

They were to meet at the Sheraton. That was the last communication between the redranger and Meg Parker. Redranger, aka Jeffery Eldon Purcell had arrived in Denver. They knew that much. They knew he had not kept his rendevous with Meg at the Sheraton. He looked back at the dates on the sheet.

There had been no action since the plans were made. Was it possible that the hacker did not need to check on Meg because he knew exactly where both she and Jeffery were now?

“This guy has Meg and Jeffery Purcell!” It was a wild guess and it was also a statement of fact. Jack Farley felt a cold hard knot forming in the pit of his stomach. He hated it when he was right and he knew he was right. And he knew the son was on his way. And he knew he needed answers. No, he needed Meg Parker to be standing in the yard waving when the helicopter landed. That was what he needed, but more than that, he needed to know how to make that happen. He needed computer locations and names on leases and, oh God, this was not looking good at all.

He turned to Ferrel Buford with a pleading look in his eyes. “We need a miracle. We are trying to chase waves in the air that we cannot see. I am afraid if we are not quick enough this woman and the man she was meeting will both die. You are the man that can make it happen.”

As he turned away, he knew that miracles do not always happen just because you want them to. And in the far distance he heard the beating rotor of a helicopter headed towards the little farm on the side of the mountain.

Installment 39 Fred

Installment #39

Fred

Fred switched on the miner’s light on his hat. Damn glad he had it on there. Well, it was always on his head except when he was sleeping. You just never knew when you might need a light and right now he sure needed one. This tunnel was black as old Coty’s ….well it was black alright. He took a few tentative steps forward. The tunnel was dark, and damp, and musty. He would have bet there were lots of spiders and centipedes and Lord only knew what. It was hard to believe that just a foot above his head the sun was shining very brightly, because down here it was another world. Well, this was no place to wishy wash about something. Just do it. Sooner you do it the sooner it was done. And Fred, although every fiber of his being wanted to turn and run out into the bright sunlight, pointed his lantern forward and walked determinedly forward.  Something was not right and by God in Heaven, Fred Himes was going to find out what it was and for once in his life, set it right.

He was amazed at how quickly he arrived at the back entrance to the house.  Sure seemed a lot further when he was digging the silly thing. He pressed his ear to the door and listened. Not a sound.  He knew the man was gone, but still the cabin was deathly quiet. Very slowly he eased the door inward. Nothing. Not even a drippy faucet. Absolute silence. Now the door was completely open. He looked around at the kitchen. Not a dish out of place. The towel hung on the oven door handle. The clock hand moved jerkily around. Fred stepped in the kitchen and closed the tunnel door behind himself. He moved stealthily across the kitchen to the bathroom. Empty. Living room. Undisturbed and empty.

There had to be a woman here somewhere. He had seen the man bring her inside. He very slowly opened the bedroom door and peered inside. No one. Fred stared in consternation at his face in the mirror. Where was she? He canvassed the house once more and then his eyes fell on the door beside the door he had come through. The root cellar! That had to be the root cellar. After he had dug the tunnel the man had altered it and instead of coming up the tunnel to the root cellar, he had come up the tunnel to the back door. Why had he changed that? Fred reached for the door and froze.

How many times had he pictured his father doing this exact samething? Only when he pictured his father he also pictured his mother. His dear, dead mother being placed in the wall of the root cellar by his father. How many times had he gone to the root cellar to get beets, or potatoes, or onions. How many times when the tornado sirens were screaming had he and his father gone to the root cellar knowing that was the one place the tornado could not touch. And not once had he even thought about what might be in the wall of the root cellar.

Never once had he dreamt that his dear sainted mother was sleeping her death sleep just a few feet from him and his father. His father knew. He knew all along and never said a word. When Fred had wished his mother would come back to them and voiced that desire to his father, his father had only said, “Quit dreaming, Freddie, if she was coming back she never would have left.”

Fred often wondered what had happened the night she died. Or was it day? He never even  remembered them ever fighting. Just mom looking sad and dad reading the paper. They never talked. How could his father have ever worked up enough emotion to kill his mother? His father and mother were both unemotional people. He stared at the door.  He was going to have to open it and see what was behind it. Slowly he grasped the knob and turned it. Well, not turning. Locked. Locked! That meant the woman, probably Meg Parker was behind that door and she was locked in there. If she was locked in there she was not a willing participant that was clear. He scoured the door frame for a key. None. The man must have the key.

Think! Think! He remembered back to when he dug the tunnel. At that time it had been through the root cellar. Now it was not. He jerked the tunnel door open, took a few steps and reached his hand out and felt the wall. A little further down.  More. There! The dirt was soft. The man had removed the dirt over there, placing it over here. By doing that he had altered the location of the tunnel. Not much, but enough so the root cellar could now be used as a prison for someone. Or a place to bury her. Maybe she was dead. With a furor he never knew he had Fred unsnapped the folding shovel that hung from his waist and began to dig frantically in the soft dirt. Very soon he had a hole through and could see inside the root cellar. All he could see was another wall, but he would be in the room very soon. And like a man fighting for his very life, he continued to throw dirt over his shoulder until at last the hole was big enough for him to slide through.

As he stood up and looked around he saw her clearly. Meg Parker lay on a small cot with a soft cloth on her shoulder. Chloroform! He moved the cloth, but Meg did not stir. Fred was unsure of anything at that moment. As he gazed down at the sleeping woman something stirred in his soul. Something very far back in the deep recesses of his mind fluttered and made him feel wanted. Something made him feel warm. He touched her cheek tentatively, then smiled. Funny, he did not remember smiling in a very long time, but now it felt rather natural. He knew what he had to do and as he reached for
the woman he felt like he had just come home from a very long and bitter war.

Meg Parker. Darling.

Installment #38 Marshall

Installment #38

Marshall

Marshall opened the back of the Jeep and began throwing wood off to the side. When Ambrose lay before him he took a deep breathe and  hoisted the big man unceremoniously to the ground. Well this was going to be a dragging act because he sure could not lift him. Oh, yeah, there was the snow shovel!  Glad he had bought that. It would come in handy for this task. He wedged the handle under a nearby boulder and pulled Ambrose into position. There we go!  Brains over brawn any day of the week. He grasped the handle, maneuvered into position and was amazed at how easily the load went up the hill, through the opening and as he neared the hole ahead he turned the handle and pushed the body near the hole. Now, how to unload it without getting too close. Marshall studied the site for a moment and then laughed. All he had to do was get the body a little further and then raise the handle and off into the eternal never land of sleep the cop would go!

Very carefully he moved the body forward until he felt it start to pull the shovel down.  He slowly raised the handle just an inch or two and Holy Shit! In the hole it all went, shovel, body and damn near Marshall. In just the briefest moment of clarity, he released the shovel handle right before it jerked him over the side. There was the first thud as the body hit the wall. He waited. He waited. The second thud never came. He crept closer to the edge and shined his light over the side. Holy Mother! The man was straddling the shovel which was wedged into a crevice. He stared closer. That rat bastard was laughing at him!  He played his light around the walls. There was no way down and no way up.  He was just going to have to stay there and laugh, because there was nothing Marshall could do at this point. The corpse had stolen his shovel and was now hanging above the abyss laughing at him. This was not good. This was not good at all. Marshall contemplated his options. Let’s see, he could climb to the bottom and what? Stay there the rest of his life? Or he could take the high road and do nothing. That seemed the way to go. If some idiot happened to stumble on his little cavern here, the bodies on the bottom might go unnoticed, but Brome Hilda there on the shovel handle was practically begging to be seen. Oh, well, that was a problem he could do nothing about.

Oh, and that shovel handle. He had not left a fingerprint on anyone in the bottom there, but that shovel handle would be a treasure trove of DNA and the little dealy with the ISBN number on it could be traced to the hardware store and right to Mr. Marshall Purcell. A trickle of sweat began to run down his neck and on down his back. Felt like a damn Centipede! He stood erect and hurried from the cavern into the bright Colorado sunlight.

As he hurried down the hill and the Jeep came in sight he reached in his pocket for the keys. Other pocket. He stopped and patted himself from top to bottom. Every pocket he had. Crap! Not again! He had just had this talk with himself about not locking his keys in the car and now, when he was in a hurry, he had done the very thing he had warned himself about. He stopped and went through the pockets again. They had to be in the Jeep. He had to have them to get here so they were not on him, they had to be in there. Just in case he got lucky he walked to the back of the Jeep and stared at the empty lock. Not there. Nope, definitely not there. He walked to the passenger door.  Locked. He looked in the ignition. Not there. Oh, no!  Had that cop somehow managed to pick his pocket? Dead people did very strange things. He knew that for a fact.

There was that whore he had picked up on Larimer Street that one afternoon. He had checked them all out and she appeared to be the cleanest one of the bunch. She was wearing a skirt so short he thought he could see her panties. Or not panties. She had huge breasts. They were so big he thought they must be false.  He pulled the Jeep to the curb and looked directly at her. She came and leaned in the window and he reached over and touched her cleavage.
“How much?”
 “For what, sweetie? An hour? A blow job? All day? You got to tell Flo what you want.”
“All afternoon. A walk in the forest. I want to screw on the forest floor on a pile of pine needles."
 “You ain’t kinky are you? You won’t hurt me will you? Johnny doesn’t like me to leave this area, so it gonna cost you extra. Johnny gets mean sometimes.”
“Get in Flo. I will make it worth your time. “

He opened the door and settled back behind the wheel. Flo climbed in and nestled back into the leather seat. “Nice,” she said and smiled showing a mouth full of yellow teeth. Marshall slipped the Jeep into drive and pulled out into the traffic headed west toward the mountains. It did not take long to reach the area he sought. Flo was enjoying the act of being a lady and waited for him to open her door.  He took her hand and led her to a nearby blanket of pine needles. She giggled as he spread a sheet over the top of the aromatic bed provided by Mother Nature. He removed her sunglasses and stared into her eyes. Yes, he had chosen well. He settled himself on the newly made bed.  He removed his slacks and indicated what he wanted.
“And look at me while you are doing it. Look me right in the eyes.”
She began her work and she was very good at it. Her eyes never left his.
“Oh, Mother!” he murmured as she worked on him and as he felt his release he screamed the words, “MOTHER, MOTHER, MOTHER!” And then it was over and he was spent.
He felt the tears spilling down his cheeks. And then she laughed. Damned whore! Who was she to laugh at him? He grabbed her tit and bit down with all the force he had as she screamed and tried to pull away. He spit the nipple across the forest floor and grabbed her head and snapped her neck. Bitch! She had made something so beautiful, dirty. Marshall wrenched his mind away from that afternoon and focused, slowly on the problem at hand.

He was locked out of his jeep in a very bad place. His keys were probably down at the bottom of the cavern along with lots of bones, the whore included. Well, he sure as hell could not call Triple AAA. Well, he could, but that move would not be wise at all. Then he smiled. Then he chuckled. He was not screwed yet. He had a key hidden in the Jeep under the seat. He had done that because this was not his first rodeo. He would simply pick up a rock and break the window, reach in and open the door and get the key and drive his little self home. Life was good. He quickly located a rock that was satisfactory for the purpose and slammed it into the window. Not quite as easy as he thought, but soon he was inside the Jeep and had the key in the ignition and disarmed the shrill alarm that was quickly destroying his ear drums.

He backed the Jeep around until he was positioned for the downhill descent, slowly released the clutch and moved forward, never once looking at the ring of keys laying in the dirt not 10 feet from the back of the Jeep. He was intent on getting home to the woman he loved.

Installment #37 Jack

Installment #37 Jack

Jack cursed as the phone in his hand continued to ring. “Answer Ambrose! Where in the hell are you?”  He dialed Meg again and still the busy signal. Where was she or who was she talking too? No. Women could talk but not for hours. They had tiny bladders and would be afraid someone could hear them pee. Traffic was light this morning, but he still held to pretty much the speed limit. Still 30 minutes from the Parker place and then he would know the score.

He gripped the wheel as a black Jeep came around the curve with one wheel in his lane, but before they met the Jeep turned onto an obscure little road. Kind of hard to make that turn without swinging a little wide. So he forgave the driver. When he finally pulled in the yard at Meg’s house he was almost relieved. Everything looked alright. Well, almost alright. The dogs were in the yard, so Meg must have put them out. No, there was a doggie door!  So why weren’t they inside waiting at the kitchen door to bark at this intruder?

 He jumped quickly from his car and ran to the house. The back door was open. He entered and began calling. No answers. The doggie door had a panel keeping the dogs out! He raised the panel and they ran in and began searching frantically for Meg. Upstairs, through the house, back out in the yard. Inside, outside. There was no reason for him to search. The dogs would have alerted him if anything turned up, good or bad.

He keyed his mike and waited for the signal and then spoke into the radio, “This is unit 17 and we have a problem. Ambrose is gone and the lady of the house is missing. I want all available units up here stat! And tell Leroy to move mountains. I need the name of whoever was in Meg Parker’s computer and we don’t have a minute to waste. This is no longer a stalking case, it is probably a hostage or homicide. Or a hostage and a homicide.”

He leaned to the floor and picked up a black shiny flat rock. Ambrose had dropped his worry stone.  He called it his lucky worry stone, but Jack could not stop the next thought, “Well, Ambrose, I think your luck just ran out.”

Installment #32 Marshall Purcell

Installment #32

Marshall Purcell

He watched from high in the tree as the men knocked on
her door. At first he thought they were visitors, but soon he could
see they were not. And his telescope sure brought that badge
right into focus. Cops. What were they doing with her? What
had she done?
Oh, hell. It was about Jeffery. Jeffery was the redranger.
By now his little wife would surely be worried and looking for
him. That was her meal ticket after all. Of course no one had
seen him in Denver and he was supposed to be working there. So
it was only natural to call and report him missing. Must be a
pretty important guy for them to get right on it like that.

“Oh, yes officers here is his computer. Why no he would
never fool around on me. Look at this, I ask you , would you
leave this home in bed and chase some little trollop around?
Meg? Meg who? Jeffery never knew any Meg. Why she must
be one of the workers on that silly football thing he was hired to
consult about. Well, I do not care about all that silliness! Jeffery
was devoted to me, now just go find him. I don’t need to read
that trash!”

He knew when they went into the house that they were
headed for the computer. Well, they would find no trace of him
there. Nor anywhere in her house. He was too good for that. He
was like a ghost. He could walk in and out and no one ever
would have seen him. Like last night. Oh glory! He smiled at
the memory of last night. The moon was starting to wane so he
had made his way down the mountain. Across her back yard to
her kitchen window. He could see her setting at the table
working a crossword puzzle. He knew she would stay there until
it was finished and he knew the dogs would stay with her. The
radio was playing some old country station. He could hear it
clear out here.

He moved swiftly to the side patio and pulled his special
grappling hooks out of his back pack. Fitting them carefully
into notches he had made several months ago he pulled himself
to the patio roof. Reaching out he caught the railing of the
upstairs patio and swung himself onto the floor. Not a sound. A
ghost. He took the slender piece of steel from his pocket and
jimmied the door. He moved quickly to the bathroom and found
what he was after hanging behind the door. His rough hands
removed the silky nightgown from the hook and he buried his
face in the folds and breathed deeply. Oh, the bliss of her
womanly scent. Not really perfume but a smell that wrenched at
his heart. He shoved the gown into the plastic bag he had
brought for that very purpose. He did not want her smell mixed
with any other smell. This was his euphoria!

He slid the patio curtain to one side and then the other one
the same; just an inch or so. He exited onto the patio, locking the
door behind himself. He slid the garden bench forward just
enough so he could fit behind it if need be. And then he set down
to wait. Soon he was rewarded as he saw the kitchen light go out
and the hall light upstairs shine brightly. The dogs ran into the
bedroom first and sat by their crates to wait. Meg went into the
bathroom to prepare for bed and very soon emerged with a
puzzled look on her face. She lifted the pillow and then opened
the drawer and drew out another nightgown. Glancing once more
at the bed she returned to the bathroom. Soon she came back out
wearing the peach nightgown that he loved so well. It struck her
at mid calf and clung to her as she moved. She gave the dogs
their treats and closed their doors. She flipped on her bedside
light and piled pillows for her back. As she settled in her bed she
picked up her book from the bedside table. But her eyes strayed
to the patio doors.
She noticed the curtains were open, but did not seem
concerned. Did she know he was there? She seemed to be
looking right at him. He stared back at her. Then she stretched
her leg and raised her arms above her head. She was tempting
him! She knew he was there and she was wanting him to come
inside. Well, he wasn’t ready for that just yet! Oh, she would
beg him some day and when that day came, he knew he would
not be able to resist her feminine wiles. First she must stop
behaving like a slut. All that stretching and showing her breasts
outlined by the sensuous peach colored gown. Theirs must be a
union of purity. She must keep her green eyes open. He must be
able to see the green or were they blue? They must not be black.
No! No black eyes would he look into again, ever!
He watched as she drew her knees up and closely eyed her
toe nails. They were not polished. He was glad to see that. But with her setting there
like that he noticed her legs gaping apart. He thought he could
see, what? What? It did not look like she was wearing under
wear! By God she wasn’t! Why that Jezebel was naked under
that night gown! She was naked and him not 20 feet away! But
he would forgive her this once. She did not know he was there,
but he knew she was there. As he watched, she reached up and
turned out the lamp, the book forgotten at her side. She was
going to sleep. As he looked at the dark window he gently pulled
the night gown from the bag and pressed it to his face. They were
going to sleep now. As his eyes grew heavy he felt a small fire
flicker in his loins. They were one.

Hours later when he awoke with a stiff neck, he put the
night gown back into the bag and slowly and quietly climbed
down the same way he had climbed up. And like the ghost that
he was he silently crept across the field and up the mountain,
unseen by anyone or anything, except a shadow on the edge of
the clearing.

Installment 31 Meg, Jack, Ambrose

Installment #31

Meg, Jack, and Ambrose

Meg gazed at the two men on her doorstep. Detective
Jack Farley and Detective Ambose Middleton. She felt a
feeling of being disconnected from her own body. Yes, she had
seen the news. No, she did not know a Jeffery Purcell. And
what did any of this have to do with her? Well, yes she did
know a redranger from the Internet. No she had never met him.
Yes she was supposed to meet him in Denver at the Sheraton on
Thursday, but he had not shown up. No, she had heard nothing
since then. And the final blow when Jack Farley explained how
Jeffery Eldon Purcell had flown out of Brattleboro, Vermont
and flown into Denver. He had disembarked at Stapleton and
his wife had heard nothing from him since he left Vermont.

“Were you aware that he had a wife and children?”
“Of course not, Mr. Farley! What kind of woman do you
take me to be?”
“Well certainly not one that picks men up on the
Internet!” He remarked sarcastically and Meg blushed. He was
right about that!
“We are going to need to take a good look at your hard
drive. Going to have to take it in and that may take some time.
Is that a problem?” This Jack Farley was getting on her last
nerve.
“Oh it most definitely is a problem. I run my eBay
business through the computer. I keep all my records on the
computer. I communicate through my computer. I just can’t
let you take that!” She crossed her arms across her chest and
then quickly remembered that was a defensive gesture. She
dropped her hands to her sides and then felt vulnerable. She
placed a hand on each hip and glared at Jack Farley. “I have
done nothing wrong here! What earthly good would my
computer be to you? I told you about our emails.” Jack
Farley thought for a moment.

“Alright I can probably do this here and get what I
need.” He turned to his partner. “Ambrose, I am going to
need about five or six hours. You want to hang out here or go
kill time somewhere? I could actually use the help if you
don‘t mind.” Ambrose nodded his assent. Jack turned to Meg
and extended his arm indicating that she should lead the way.
She opened the door and stepped inside. The men followed.
Jack was experienced at what he was doing and very
quickly had the computer booted and running and was in her
email account, but in an area she did not know existed. He
scrolled slowly through her correspondence with redranger,
pausing now and then and making a notation. Then he turned to
her and asked, “Why do you read his emails and then rather then
just leave them, mark them as new and then come back later and
answer them? That seems kind of strange.” He waited.

“ I don’t. I open them, answer them and then they go
to old mail. Why would I want to save them as new?”
“You are the only one that uses this computer, right?”
“Yes, my son was here, but he didn’t even come in here.”
“Well either you are doing that or you have a very savvy
hacker. Come here.” He pointed to a blip on the screen. “See
that? That is open, then keep as new. And here. Another one.”
He continued to point them out as she stared in amazement.
“No one is ever in here but me!”
“Oh, he does not have to be in here. He can be miles
away. If you did not do this then someone is operating your
computer from their computer. No problem at all for someone
who knows what he is doing. Probably paid you a visit at some
point and left behind what he needed to make this work. Had any company
lately besides your son? I am assuming he would not do this?”

He looked at Meg and waited for a reaction. He got it as she
suddenly remembered the bar of Irish Spring in her shower when
she returned from California.

“Yes,” she said very slowly, “Yes, but I do not know
who it was.” She then explained to him about that experience,
about the bars now on the windows, the doggie door alteration
and who had done the work.

“This Fred guy, how well do you know him? Good with
electronics? I mean computers and such?”

Meg laughed. “Oh, no! Fred is not good at anything
except manual labor. He lives up the hill and is the area
handyman. I don’t think he knows that computers even
exist. Other than that I can‘t think of anyone who has been here.”
“Neighbors? Any of them ever stop by?”
“No. I only ran into the man up North once in the past
I don’t know how many years. He is only up there some time.
I think. Guess I really don’t know.”

“Got any fellas hanging around who might be a little
jealous? I noticed the only emails that were messed with were
the ones from redranger, Jeffery Purcell. So he is not after your
money, or your accounts, he just wants to keep tabs on your
extracurricular stuff basically. And he knew you planned on
meeting Jeffery on Thursday. See anyone you knew in the
Sheraton that day?”

Meg stared in disbelief. What was this guy after? But
sadly it all made perfect sense. Someone was in her home and
now was in her computer and was in her life and in her head.
How could she type another word and feel safe? She couldn’t.
But who would be doing this? No one paid any attention to her
movements. Well not that she knew about anyway.
“No, not a soul.”
“Anybody follow you home? Anybody here when you got
here? Anything messed with?”
“No. No. I just cannot think of anyone at all who is even
remotely interested in me for any reason.” She dropped her head
in her hands and began to cry softly. “Oh, Tommy,” she thought
to herself, “What is this all about? God I wish you were here.”

Jack Farley patted Meg awkwardly on her shoulder.
“Listen, Meg, uh, may I call you Meg?” She nodded her assent
and he continued. “I can’t do it. I am not smart enough, but
there are guys at the station who can dig in this thing and come
up with who ever is messing with your account. I got a feeling
that he messed with Jeffery Purcell too. That guy didn’t just fall
off the face of the earth. And I think we need to know this now,
because I think you are in danger. So can I take your hard drive?
Or is eBay more important? Not to put any pressure, but I can get
a warrant if I need to go that route.”

Meg knew what had to happen as well as Jack Farley.
“Oh, well, go ahead. Let me just put the store on vacation and
that will take care of eBay.” She sat down in front of the machine
she now was afraid of and entered a few things and then stepped
away. “Done.”

“Thanks, now I would like to get someone up here to keep
an eye on you until we get some answers. Whoever this is knows
where you live and he knows your routine. Now why would a
complete stranger go to all this work if he weren’t after
something. I think it is you he is after.”
Meg sighed and agreed with him. Something was going
on and she had no idea what it was, but she did know she was
afraid for the first time in her life. The bars on the windows were
not enough to keep the intruder out of her computer, so how
could they keep anyone that determined out of her home? She
was sure of one other thing, if Kevin found out about this he
would force her to come to California.

“ I will make up the guest room for whoever is coming.”

“No, he is not coming here to sleep. He is coming here
to take care of you. Ambrose will stay until his replacement gets
here. Probably tomorrow.” He placed the hard drive in the car
and then crawled into the drivers’ side. “Even with someone
here you need to stay inside and stay alert. I am afraid this guy
is serious and I just wish I knew what he was serious about.” He
put the car in drive and pulled out the circle drive.
Meg gave a wave and turned to Ambrose, “Well, buddy,
looks like it is just you and me.”
They walked back into the house and Ambrose checked
that all the doors and windows were secure before he pulled a
chair from the table and sat down to watch, who knew what.

Installment #29

Meg

Meg let her computer boot up as she changed into her
pajamas. It had been a long day. A long and completely wasted
day. She had left home this morning thinking that maybe tonight
she would be in Eldon’s arms, but that had not happened. A
wasted trip to Denver and a long, lonely drive home. Daisy and
Elvira were happy to see her and that cheered her up a little.
They were such simple creatures. She would let them stay out of
the crates until she finished her computer work.

Forty-eight emails. She scanned the list and nothing from
redranger. Well, she was not going to write him. He had been
the one who did not show up and he owed her an apology at the
very least. She answered six questions. She had sold eight items
so she printed out the PayPal receipts, deleted the Item sold and
copies of the pay for your items. The remaining 18 were mostly
advertisements that had escaped the Spam filter and a few
newsletters and three forwards, “You have to read this it is really
funny! ” They weren’t.

She closed her email and put the computer into the sleep
mode and stood and pushed her chair into the desk. She got
the dog treats and walked to the crates. The dogs took their
bribes and ran into the crates to devour them. Meg looked at her
big, lonely bed and for the first time in a very long time she felt
totally and completely alone. She had never met Eldon, the
redranger, but she missed him. She felt that a very vital piece
of Meg Parker was missing. She switched on the television
knowing full well she would not sleep this night. Too bad
Johnny Carson was not on anymore. He had always made her
laugh. The television was programmed to turn off after one
hour if she did not tap the action button. Saved energy that way.
She watched the end of CSI and then burrowed into the big
lonely bed as the weather man started pointing at different low
fronts.

She did not get the details of the week ahead as her
head nodded and when the perky little blonde announced that
the Architect who was coming to Denver to add his expertise to
the new addition at Invesco Field had left Brattleboro,
Vermont, arrived in Denver had then disappeared into thin air.
But her ears were deaf and her body completely relaxed. Had
she been awake she might have made the connection between
Jeffery Eldon Purcell and the redranger, but she was not. She
was dreaming of a tall dark stranger who was eluding her even
in her dreams.

Installment #27

Installment #27

Him

Marshall Purcell doused his lights and pulled to the side
of the road. He watched as Meg drove into the garage and the
door closed behind her. First the kitchen light came on. She
would be greeting the dogs if the idiot that took care of the place
had not locked them in their crates. Then he saw the light at the
top of the stairs and he watched as the kitchen light went dark.

Ah, if he were there now she would be coming down the
hallway to him. He would be laying on the bed reading.

NO!  He would be IN the bed reading. He would be naked under the
lavender sheets. NO! That was not right! He would be setting in
the overstuffed chair, fully dressed. He would be reading
Tolstoy or something just as boring. She would come in and kiss
him lightly on top of the head and then touch him lightly on the
shoulder. And he would grab her and pull her to him!

NO! My God what was he thinking! If he were to kiss
her she would no doubt part her lips slightly and he might touch
the tip of her tongue with his. NO! This was wrong! This
whole thing was getting out of control! He hated sex! He
groaned as he felt the hardness pushing against the crotch of his
suit pants. If that thing was going to keep acting like this he
would cut it off! “If thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out.“
Well that was already plucked out and by God, no less.

He started the Jeep and pulled onto the road as he began to sob.

Installment #28

Installement #28

Fred

Her farm was a small one and not really a farm at all. Just a
house, chicken house and that was it. The garage was attached
to the house.

Meg Parker was a fine figure of a woman, he had to give
her that. She pretty much kept to herself and not much traffic
that he had ever seen. Sure thing no men running in and out.
Dogs pretty well had the run of the place now that he had
installed the doggie door. Hadn’t needed the cage on the
outside. Little bitty doggie door and you’d have to be a damn
string bean to get through it and into the house what with the
dog leg he had installed inside. Guy could get trapped and
starve to death in a deal like that.

As Fred neared the edge of the clearing he saw car lights
coming up the road. And back further a second car. Lot of
traffic for this area and this time of night. The first car slowed
and turned into the Parker place. Hmmm. Meg must be home
from wherever she had gone. Was that other car going to her
place? Meg drove into the garage and lowered the door. The
second car drove slowly past her drive and then its lights went
out and he watched as it parked on the side of the road. What
was that all about? Was Meg in danger? He touched his 44
Magnum, reassuring himself that it was there. And the machete.
He watched as the light came on in the kitchen. Then he
watched as the light went on upstairs and the kitchen light went
out. And he watched the car. Well not a car, some kind of big
vehicle. Hey wait! That vehicle looked familiar. He crept
closer. It was a Black Jeep. Like that fella over west of him.
The guy who had him dig that long tunnel into the forest. Jeez
that had been a job and a half. Damn near got the best of him
all those rocks and roots.

Fred waited, wondering what the guy was doing. Spying
on Meg Parker? What could he see? Nothing. Needed to take a
leak? Gonna have to get out of the car to do that! Nothing was
happening. Nothing. Whoops! The car started suddenly and Fred
jumped guiltily. At least he was behind it so he probably had
gone undetected. Then the Jeep pulled onto Bonner Road and the
lights came on along with the blinker turning left onto Storm
Lake Road. It was that crazy bastard! This was very strange, but
along with the feeling of bewilderment came a growing sense of
dread. Something was not right here and he did not like it. He
had dealt with this character and not been comfortable at all when
he did. And the tunnel. What was that all about? He had
wondered, but only a little. Now it took on new meaning. Why
was the guy parked there watching Meg’s house? Better be on
our toes, Freddy boy.

And he turned back and headed North to his little cabin in
the big woods.

Installment #26

Installment #26

Meg

Meg stepped out of the little silver Ford and took the
parking stub from the valet. She smiled as she walked into
the lobby of the Sheraton and spotted the entrance to the
restaurant. She smiled at the maitre de and told him she was
meeting some one. “Is he here yet? His name is Eldon.”

“No one by that name has checked in yet. Perhaps
madam would like to wait at the bar and I will let you know
when he arrives?”
 Meg agreed and soon found herself seated
at the bar. She checked her watch and saw that it was already
12:20. Eldon had said noon. He was already 20 minutes late.
Well maybe he had gotten tied up. Things do have a way of
doing that. She ordered a glass of white wine and began her
favorite pastime of people watching. By one o’clock she was
fidgeting and by 2:00 she was fuming. The clientele in the
lounge had turned over at least once. The waiter was
beginning to look askance at her. She knew how many
glasses of wine she had sipped and that she really needed to
get something in her stomach before she started the long drive
home. She caught the waiter’s eye.

“ I guess my friend is tied up. Might I have a small
table, preferably by a window? I really should eat something
before I drive my car.” She smiled at the sad young man.

“Certainly, ma’am. I have just the table for you. Great
view of the garden and if you stretch your neck to the right you
can see the fountain.”

“Then I shall ‘stretch my neck’!” She laughed as she rose
to follow him to the table. Once more she was seated, but this
time with a glass of Raspberry Iced Tea instead of wine and a
blackened tilapia served on wild rice with pinon and basil,
recommended by Jerome, the waiter who reminded her very
much of her dear Kevin. She had craned her neck and managed
to see the fountain, which was indeed a work of art. But then so
were the gardens.

She would reserve judgment on Eldon aka “redranger”
until she heard from him. He might have a very good excuse.
Or he might be what the Internet warned us all about, a faceless
little creep hiding behind the boiler in a prison somewhere
figuring out a way to get to Meg Parker. She made a silent vow
to herself to find out more about this man that she had become so
attached to through her computer. But right now she just wanted
to go home, back to her part of the mountain where she felt safe
and not so vulnerable as here in the middle of Denver, Colorado,
waiting for a man that she knew was not coming.

She put her money with the bill and closed the cover,
leaving a very generous tip for Jerome. She crossed the lobby
and handed her ticket stub to the valet and waited. When the
little silver car arrived, she tipped the valet and climbed inside.
She adjusted the seat, checked the mirror and pulled into traffic.
She did not notice the black Jeep pull onto the street at the same
time. Nor did she notice the black Jeep when she took the ramp
to I 25 South. Nor as she turned on the Johnny Mathis CD, one
of her deviations from Country Western.

She began to sing along with him “There is someone,
watching your footsteps , Turn around, look at me! There is
someone waiting to hold you, Turn around, look at me. For I
have waited, and I‘ll wait forever, for you to come to me.
Turn around, look at me!”

And she was completely oblivious when she turned into
her yard and pulled into her garage.

But He was not.

Installment #24

Installment #24

Him And Eldon

He pulled the Black Jeep into the short term parking at
Stapleton and pulled his ticket from the little box that spit them
out so faithfully. He put it in his pocket and pulled into a
vacant space near the end of the third row. That was luck! It
was going to be his day; Karma dictated it. He strolled through
the door with 15 minutes to spare before the plane landed. He
looked at the bank of greeters holding their signs with names
printed. John, Mary Smith, Eldon. That was the one. He took
a deep breathe and hurried toward the blonde haired fellow in
very casual dress. Name tag. Great!

“Jerry?” He looked the guy right in the eye. “You
waiting for Eldon?”
“Yeah, why?”
“Well, John sent me to do the waiting. Said he needs
you back at the office, post haste. Some kind of problem. Said
tell you to hurry.”
“What’s going on? He told me this was important.! Said
I had to meet this guy and get him there safe and sound. Why
didn’t he call me?”
“Look, I don’t know. He said he tried to call but got a
busy signal, so he said I should get over here and send you
back. What! You think I just happened in here, saw you with a
sign and decided I wanted to pick up Eldon? Do I look nuts?”
Jerry laughed. “Well, when you put it that way……”
He started for the exit. He stopped him.
“Hey, buddy, leave me the sign or we are going to miss
the connection here!” Jerry handed him the sign and walked
away shaking his head.

So now he stood with the “Eldon” sign hoisted high
as the passengers began to stream down the runway.
He spotted the man and recognized the walk. Tall, lanky
guy with a shock of brown hair and steely blue eyes. How long
had it been? Oklahoma. Jeffery. Jeffery Eldon Purcell. He
shuddered as he made the connection between Jeffery Eldon
Purcell and the redranger and Meg Parker. And he cringed as he
lowered the sign and prayed Jeffery had not seen it. Finally he
realized that a prayer of his had been answered as Jeffery
scanned the signs looking for his name. He did not see his name,
but he did see the face of his brother, Marshall Purcell. Their
eyes met and they both realized that this was a chance meeting in
a very unexpected place that neither of them could have
foreseen. Jeffery appeared bewildered.

“Marshall? What are you doing here? Did John send you? Are you meeting me?”
“Jeff! Lord no, I just happened to be killing some time
waiting for a friend to get in from California. What are you
doing here?”
“I have a consulting job here for a company in Denver.
Someone was supposed to meet me, but it looks like I may be
stood up. How long have you got? Can we grab a cup of
coffee and catch up a little?”
“Hang on a sec. I may be stood up myself. Let me
make a call.” He turned away and punched a few numbers in
the phone and then waited.
“Oh, Jane this is Marshall. Are you behind schedule?”
He nodded as he listened to nothing and then said, “Oh, no that
is fine. Something unexpected has come up here on my end. I
will just see you at the apartment this evening…Yeah, honey,
you too.” He closed the phone and turned to face Jeff who had
apparently been listening very closely.
“Wow! Who is Jane? Sounds serious. Are you married?
Living together?”
Jeffery was a multitude of questions. And
Marshall was an enigma with no ready answers. He looked at
his twin brother with a blank look and a mind that was a blur.
He had come to the airport to meet a man named redranger with
the full intent of killing him, but here he stood in the hubbub of
Stapleton International Airport in Denver, Colorado face to face
with his twin brother that he had not seen nor communicated
with in years. Had this been a faceless stranger, it would have
been easy to bull shit his way through, but here was the face he
had grown up with, the face that still looked at him in the
bathroom mirror every morning and many times a day. But a
plan was a plan, wasn’t it?

“Well, Marshall, where are you staying? What are your
plans?” He paused, like he didn’t know what was planned.
“I have some work to do for Higgenboth Architects here
in Denver and that will keep me busy until noon tomorrow and
then I am meeting someone I have been communicating with
online. An old army buddy. Haven’t seen him in years.”

Marshall sighed. Damn liar did not realize that he had
just sealed his fate. No reason to change any plans because this
was his brother. This was the same little worthless piece of shit
that had made his life so miserable when they were still at
home. Telling mom every time he looked cross ways. Really
had the old man eating out of his hand and he had gotten his
hind end beaten more than once by Jeffery’s lies. And he had
tried to tell Jeffery about mom and the dip wad up the street
and Jeffery had just looked at him and went to mom. Another
ass beating. No, Jeffery was no different now and that was too
bad. It would have been kind of nice to have a little family, but
it sure was not this idiot. Brothers should not lie to brothers.
Suddenly Jeffery turned to Marshall. He stared in
wonder. “Your eye! What is that? Did you get an eye? I
thought you just wore that patch. When did you get this? Is it
real?” He actually had noticed something besides himself.
That was a wonder!
“It is glass. Well, not exactly glass, some sort of
artificial combination that looks like a real eye. Doesn’t work ,
but it is set in there so it actually moves a little and at first
glance it looks pretty real. I had this done about four years
ago. Still have the scar, but it isn‘t as pronounced or maybe I
have just learned to live with it. Anyway, it was good of you to
notice the eye.” Marshall stopped and then asked, “How is the
old man?“
Jeffery shuffled his feet then looked at Marshall. “I
don’t know. After you left and mom died he married a real
loser. We moved to Vermont and it was clear that Virginia did
not want me around so I got my own place and they traveled a
lot and we just drifted apart. I assume they are both still
around and still alive cause I have not heard any different.”
“I thought you and him were tight?”

Jeffery laughed in derision. “No way. I watched how he
treated mom all those years and it was all I could do to stomach
being around him. He did not respect her at all. Treated her like
a doormat. All she ever wanted out of him was a little attention
and that was the one thing he was incapable of giving her. Too
damn busy with his work! Hell, when she was dying he didn‘t
even hire any help. Took care of her himself, that is how tight he
was.” Marshall wondered at Jeffery’s devotion to their mother,
but then remembered that mother had always fawned over Jeff,
so that explained that. Really not much sense trying to tell him
any different.
“So, Jeff, want me to give you a lift into Denver? I am
headed that way anyway.”
Little did Jeffery Eldon Purcell realize that this might be the last
decision he was ever to make on this earth.
“Sure! Beats hell out of walking.” They smiled as they
started for the exit at Stapleton International Airport, but for
totally different reasons. Marshall put his arm around the
shoulder of his brother who was seven minutes younger than
him and gave him a playful hug.
“Well, I bet you like to think so anyway!” They laughed.

#23

Installment #23

Meg

Meg did not turn her computer on Monday after her trip
up the mountain, so it was Tuesday morning when she read the
email from Eldon. She answered right away and soon the plans
were made and everything was in place. Eldon would arrive
Wednesday right after lunch. The driver would pick him up and
he would be busy with John until late, late that night and until
noon on Thursday. Then he was free until Monday. Business
she knew nothing about. She would meet him in the lobby of
the Sheraton at 12:30 and they would have lunch somewhere
and then just sight see until later when they would decide what
to do next. Sounded like a loosely woven plan they could both
live with. She realized that she was actually almost giddy at the
thought of meeting a man. And having lunch and then deciding
what to do next. That was the part that rather made her feel
warm and anxious. But Thursday was two days away. Lot
could happen in two days.

But she hummed as she did her chores that day. Then
she remembered the dogs rather guiltily. She phoned the friend
who watched them before. She explained that she was not sure
how long she would be gone. Maybe not even one night, but
maybe more. He laughed. Yes, he was available and yes, he
was flexible. Yes he would come Thursday afternoon and
evening and continue his chores until she told him he was done.
That taken care of she began to rifle the closet for
clothes for her trip into Denver. She realized she had nothing
sexy, but she did not want anything sexy. Nothing old maidy
either. She finally settled on a pair of black tailored slacks and a
red long sleeved clingy shirt with a high vee neckline. Little
black pumps. Then she realized that those were too dark for
summer. But it was not really summer and Denver is high and
cool so she thought it best not to obsess. And as she climbed
into her bed that night she found herself wishing that Thursday
would hurry up and get here! Sweet dreams found her that
evening and a tall stranger stood in the mist as she ran toward
him.

Installment # 22 Him

Installment #22
Him

He stood with his back to the closed door and felt the
sweat pour down from his head and arm pits. He was not ready
for this! Why had she come up here? Why was she in his yard?
This was his home and she had found him. She appeared so
innocent, but he knew better! Never knew this house was here?
Who was she trying to fool? This house had been here for years.
Years! She was snooping around and he had caught her. Did she
know about his tunnel? Did she know about his tree? Did she
know he watched her? Maybe she was watching him watching
her! Women! Nothing but treacherous bitches, every one of
them. Even that stupid Jennifer. Always making coffee and
tidying things. Damn feather duster. What was it with the
cleaning all the time? Her job was to run the office, not get in his
way.

He peered out the window and could not see any sign of
the woman. She must be gone. She had to be gone. Of course
she was gone. She was probably down there right now on her
farm gathering her eggs. Damn chickens never stopped, did
they? Course not, they were females. Females never stop what
ever they start doing. They would keep laying eggs and Meg
Parker would keep gathering them. Jennifer would keep dusting
and putting her pointed little nose into his business. Maybe he
should do something about her before he did something with
Meg Parker. When he made his move on Meg it would take time
away from the office. Jennifer would be suspicious. She might
come up here. No, she did not know where he lived. She knew
about his apartment in Denver. She knew about the apartment
on Williams, but not about the cabin here in the mountains. She
knew he went somewhere out of town, but not where. Nosey
bitch could probably figure it out. Get with the accountant and
see where he paid taxes. He shook his head violently. This was
sheer paranoia and he had more important things to concern
himself with right now!

It was now next week and redranger was on the horizon
and headed toward Denver, ready to rendevous with Meg. He
had to figure out how to stop that from happening. Get his
ducks in a row. First, check her email and see what the plan
was. It took so long for the computer to boot up that he
decided to make an exception and have a drink in the middle of
the day. A splash of soda and a splash of Scotch. Well, two
splashes of Scotch. That was better. He settled at the
computer; pulled up her yahoo account. It had been rather
quiet the last few days. No sales at all. A few feedbacks and
finally he saw the redranger. “meg. I will be leaving
Brattleboro, Vermont on Wednesday morning and arriving at
Stapleton early afternoon. John is having a car meet me so I
am good for Wednesday until Thursday. I would like to meet
with you on Thursday and we can spend the whole day
together. I am at the Sheraton and they have a lovely dining
room there. Let me know and we will firm all this up on
Tuesday.”

He hit the “print” button and then the “keep as new
button” It was one thing to hack into her account but she was a
smart woman. Smart and alert. She would connect the dots and
know something was wrong if he started leaving things laying
around or not laying around. Nothing else that was of any
interest to him. But he left the screen up in case she showed any
action. He put a CD in the player and kicked back in his
recliner.

His mind toyed with what to do with the redranger.
Eldon. That was a silly name. He wondered if it was his real
name. Somehow he doubted that it was. He had been around
and he knew what this online stuff was. Guy probably didn’t
even have a job. Just coming to Denver to play around and Meg
was his target. A little weasel that hid in the shadows and played
pretend games because he was afraid of reality. Acted like
something he was not. He would do God only knows what to
Meg and then go back to where ever he came from and never
even think about her again. Well, not while there was life in his
body! No siree! He would save her. He would protect her. A
shimmer of an idea began to form in his mind. Yes, he knew
what to do. Eldon would arrive in Denver on Wednesday.
Today was Monday. He would be ready. Of course he would be
ready. Wasn’t that what he had learned in Viet Nam, to always
be ready? He smiled as he drained his glass and the hot liquor
found the warm place right beside his heart. The heart that
suddenly longed for Meg Parker. He sighed sadly thinking of all
the things he had done and would continue to do for her. He was
sad that she could never know the real depth of his commitment
to her. It would frighten her, he knew. His eyelids grew heavy
and he chortled because he knew he was going to sleep right
there in the chair. And fully clothed as he thought of Meg
Parker standing in his yard, he touched himself and blushed at
the pleasure it brought him. Then his mind went blank with
sleep.

Installment #21

Installment #21
Meg

Meg sealed the last box, added the label, stuck a Priority Mail sticker on it and tossed it into her tote. Daisy and Elvira began to dance around as she took her hat from the hook.  She opened the door and started down the drive to the mailbox. The dogs ran ahead sniffing both sides of the road. At the mailbox she opened the big door and put the packages inside. Then she raised the flag to let the driver know that she had a pickup. She turned back towards the house, but then turned to look up the mountain. The dogs looked at her quizzically. She laughed. “All right! Just a short one though.” She crossed Banner Road and entered the field. She skirted the fence that was across the path and started up the hill. The dogs ran ahead as was their habit. Sniff and pee. Sniff and pee. Dogs had such easy lives. Soon they were at the fork in the trail that led to the tree she had discovered on her last trip up the mountain. Without a second thought she turned and headed up the path. Might as well face this demon and put it behind her. She had avoided the mountain when Greg and Kevin were here because of this and now it would be put to rest. As she neared the tree she relaxed. The brush was not beaten down at all. As she looked around she noticed the growth pattern on the big pines was the same as this one. Looked like a ladder. What a silly goose she had been. The path turned slightly to the left so she followed it. About 300 yards and she realized that off to her right was what appeared to be a small cabin. She stopped and studied it. It was a small cabin. There was a worn driveway so she knew it was used by someone. She should go back. This was someone’s home. She was trespassing. Well, not really. She was just walking past a house. The road lay right before her and she knew if she followed the road around to the right it would lead back to Banner Road where she lived. Fred lived up here somewhere, but this looked too neat to be where Fred would live. She scoffed at herself for making judgments’ about Fred. She did not know where he lived and so could not know how he lived. As she debated whether to take the road back down or go back the way she had come, she heard a vehicle coming up Storm Lake Road. She made her mind up very quickly when the Black Jeep Cherokee approached and turned into the little cabin. Curiosity made her look at the vehicle and she strained to catch a glimpse of the driver as she looked back over her shoulder. So intent was she in that endeavor that she did not notice that Elvira had stopped to itch herself. She stepped on the dogs tail and she yelped. She halted the forward momentum of the second leg and tumbled forward into Daisy. Another yelp as the door of the Jeep closed. The big man whirled and stared in her direction. He did not look happy at all. And then he looked very surprised as he started towards her. Meg rose and was dusting herself off when he reached her.

 “Are you all right lady?” He glanced at the dogs who were cowering at her feet. “Did I scare you and your dogs? Why are you up here? This is private property, you know.” He stopped and waited for her to answer. Meg was frozen in place by his cold steely eyes and then she noticed his scar. She had met this man before. Her and Tommy. Long ago.  She took a deep breathe and began her explanation.

 “Well, I am Meg Parker and I live straight south of here. I was just walking on the trail with the dogs ‘cause that is what I do sometimes. I did not even know there was a house here until I stumbled on it today. I usually turn around before I get this far. I was thinking of taking the road back and then I noticed your cabin. And then you came and so I started back and tripped on Elvira….” Her voice trailed off as she stood waiting for what? Absolution? Wrath? She turned to go. “Oh.” And that was all he said. Meg was suddenly aware of his eyes burning into her. She shivered as she suddenly felt very vulnerable. She turned back toward the trail she had come up to get here.

 “It is all right if you walk across my yard.” he said curtly as he turned and walked toward the little cabin without a backward glance. He unlocked the door and quickly disappeared inside. Meg was
left staring at a closed door.  She suddenly just wanted to be home and she hurried back the way she had come. The sun was past it’s zenith when she hurried inside and  the door locked behind her. Home! This was her sanctuary. Her haven. And suddenly she began to sob as she thought of Tommy. Never again would her Tommy hold her. Never would they laugh. As she sank into the overstuffed chair that faced the open window and the mountain she gave vent to the last three years of loneliness and frustration. The dogs stood silently at her feet and stared at the grieving woman.

Installment #20

Installment #20

Kevin and Greg

Kevin merged into the north bound lane of Interstate 25 and quickly set the cruise control on 75 mph. They would catch I 80 West in Cheyenne. It might be a bit out of the way mileage wise, but it would cut almost two hours off the trip.

 “OK, Greg. What is eating you? You been all tied up since yesterday. You might just as well spit it out!”

“Ok, Kevin. Are you buying that crock about your mom building a fortress of her house just cause she is getting old? She is not that old and I am pretty sure she can take care of herself. Something is going on there that she isn’t telling you, and I don’t like it.” He waited for a response and when none came he forged on, “ Why didn’t we walk up the mountain? There are trails up there. I seen them, but she was like a little frightened rabbit when I suggested that. Did you notice?”  He stopped and this time waited for an answer.

“Well, yeah. We used to hike up there a lot. Maybe there are more houses up there now and it is private property. Or it is rattlesnake season when they shed their skin and they are blind and can’t get out of our way. That’s how people get bit by those Timber Rattlers.” He stopped and looked at Greg. He needed more. He sounded like a little kid. “All right! All right! I don’t know what is going on and I am sure there is more than she is telling us, but what can I do? They outlawed the tying up and grilling of mothers a very long time ago. I am sure she will be all right and she will do what needs to be done and if something or someone is threatening her, she will handle it. She is a big girl.”

Greg sighed. “Well, I really like your mom and I hope you are right. I wish she had some closer neighbors. Do you know any of them? Can they check on her?”

"Greg.  Greg.  People move to the mountains to be alone. I know the handyman she uses a little. We always called him ‘that silly old Fred’. He has lived upon  the mountain for years. I think he still has the same old pickup that he had when I was living at home, but maybe not. We always thought he was married and his wife left him and his son moved away, but seems like that was just a rumor. Never been married. Never had a kid. Guess the only rumor that held any water was that his dad had killed his mother and hid her body in the root cellar. I think he is scared of root cellars. Oh, yeah and women. Seems he was an only child. But I don’t know if he even has a phone. Sure he doesn’t do the Internet!”

They fell into a restless silence as they thought about Meg and the miles whipped past. They stopped in Cheyenne for a rest stop before getting on I 80. They bought a cappuccino and a bag of Fritos. When they returned to the car, Greg took the wheel. They enjoyed the scenery and sipped the hot cappuccinos. Meg was never very far from their minds, but they could not think of a way to protect her when they had no idea what to protect her from.

Installment #17 Him

Installment #17
Him

He fingered his scar as he watched from his roost. The little fag boy was there with his little fag friend.  Meg was happy to see them. She hugged them both. Both of them! Not just her son.  He could have forgiven that, but both of them. Like that was her daughter-in-law. Couldn’t she see how wrong that was?

They were both men, for God’s sake! He could see that Kevin was going to have to meet with something bigger than life. Maybe on the way back home. San Francisco was a lot of miles away and a lot could happen. Or maybe when he got home there would be a very big earthquake. Yes! God had his way of dealing with these people. Oh, and now there was that jerk from up North to deal with. Life had sure been simple before he managed to sync his computer with hers and become part of her network. He could not believe his eyes when he saw the redranger invite himself to Denver and then ask her to join him. He was aghast when she acccepted. Was she a common trollop? She was actually going to meet that man in Denver.  That Eldon. Where? Who knew. Probably his motel room. Well, that would happen over somebody’s dead body. And it was not going to be his.  He reached in his shirt pocket and pulled out the salve that he kept there for just that use. This had some sort of Novocain or something in it that numbed it just enough to make the pain bearable. As he rubbed it he thought back to that summer night on the river. They were knee deep in mud in the heart of Viet Cong territory. It was a stealth operation as they crept closer to the big paddle boat. He could hear them laughing and they seemed to be passing something around. No doubt it was some sort of liquor because they were normally more vigilant than they were tonight. The first soldier reached the barge, pulled the pin on the grenade and heaved it over the side. The concussion was instantaneous and more than they expected. As the Viet Cong were thrown in the air, so was he. He learned later that he had landed face down on an iron piling. His eye was gone. His face a mess of an open wound from his left eyebrow to his right jawbone. The doctors talked of reconstruction, but they were not very experienced at this sort of thing. By the time he was stateside it was apparent that everything that had been done was the extent of it and what he was left with was just something he would live with. Viet Nam was not a popular war. He had mustered out in Wichita, Kansas of all places.

By this time he was used to the stares, but not ready for what lay ahead. Mom, Dad and Jeffery had met him at the station and returned him to Tulsa, Oklahoma where they were living at the time. Dad was a banking consultant so he moved around a lot. Oklahoma had some great catfish and Dad did like to fish so what better way to live than doing what he liked?  Dad and Jeffery had looked at his face and studied it. Then it was accepted and they went to the next subject. Not Mom.  She had recoiled. She had stared. She had lost her voice. She did not touch him. His own mother did not want to touch him. He remembered a time when she could not get enough of him. He massaged his scar and thought of her. He hated her.

He had left Oklahoma and when he shook the Oklahoma red dirt off his boots, he shook his mother off also. He kept in touch with Dad and Jeffery, but just barely. When mom died he did not go home for the funeral. And he was not very surprised when Dad found some woman and retired in Vermont. Little town called Brattleboro. Jeffery had drifted away and he had let him. He needed no one. He wanted Meg, but he did not need her. He had thought once that he needed his mother, but that was a wasted thought. That was when he was a needy little boy, but that little boy was gone long ago.

He leaned forward as the door opened and Meg, Kevin and Greg came out followed by the dogs.  He knew by the knapsack that they were going for a walk or run or maybe a little of both. He had watched Meg and Kevin in California so he knew the routine. Course Greg would be a health nut like Kevin. That was alright. Just so they stayed in California and left Meg alone out here. He could spare a few days. What was a few more days when he had already waited over three years?

He had never been very good with the ladies. Never learned the fine art of  wooing and winning one of the fair sex. Fair sex? He snorted. Bitches every one. His mother first and the way she had always fawned over Jeffery. No “atta boys” for him. Do this and do that, but no “thank you, son.” Not from her or the old man. He remembered suddenly, like a misty memory from way back in the deepest recesses of his mind coming home from school and running into the kitchen. His mother was there and so was the neighbor man. Forgot his name. He remembered his mother being red in her face and the neighbor man fumbling with his overalls. Funny smell. He had learned things since that day and he knew what his mother was.

He thought of the girls in high school. He was a jock and the girls hung around the field. After the game on Friday night there was always a party and always one of the girls wanting to spread her legs and think it was love. Love! He spat. No way.  If he ever fell in love it would not be with one of these sluts. It would be with a woman the direct opposite of his mother. A woman who held herself above the fray and tumult of every day living. A woman who emitted a light, like the one he saw when he looked at the Virgin Mary. That one. And when they consummated on the wedding night she would hold very still. That would be her duty. And of course, she would conceive that night and they would not have to do that again until they wanted another baby. He would cherish her. They would talk about things like his work. The house would be spotless. The child would be perfect and never cry. And every day she would make cookies for him. No more of that crap in cellophane on the grocery shelf. Fresh cookies. On a plate with a napkin under them.

He realized that the threesome and the dogs had rounded the bend in the road and were now out of sight. He let himself drift for a moment thinking of Meg Parker and dreaming of what their life would be like. He envisioned her standing in the door of the cabin in a very pale blue dress. There was lace at the throat. The hem fell well below her knees. She wore sturdy shoes. And an apron of gingham. Oh, and a plate of cookies. She knew he liked cookies. How did she always manage to have a plate of fresh cookies when she never knew when he was coming home? She was wonderful. Everything he had hoped she would be. She stared at him like he was her complete world. Her eyes were wet like she was about to cry because she was so full of love for him that it was overwhelming. And he kissed her lightly on the forehead. His world was perfect. And the best part was that she was past the child bearing years so they did not need to do the dirty, despicable act to procreate. They did not need a child to make their world complete; they had each other.

With this vision in his mind he climbed down from his perch, checked the limbs at the base of the tree, took the seven steps to the opening, stepped inside and hurried back to his cabin. He secured the door behind himself. He opened a can of Campbell’s Bean and Bacon soup and put it on to heat. He made a cold ham sandwich. He ate at the table with a small glass of red wine. He was nothing if not civilized at all times. Then he opened the refrigerator and took out his bottle of Scotch. It was the one vice he allowed himself and only here and only when he was ready for bed. He dropped four ice cubes in a tumbler and splashed the Scotch over them. He swirled the glass as he put on his pajama’s. Then he sat in his recliner and leaned back at a 45 degree angle with his feet elevated so he could just see tips of the felted gray slippers peeking over the mound that was his stomach.

He sipped the drink as he let images flit through his mind. Meg in her flannel night gown.  Meg lying quietly on her side of the bed. Meg with her hungry eyes looking at him. Of course he had on his cotton pin striped pajama’s. He took her hand because this was how they usually slept. He realized how soft her hand was. For some reason unknown to him, he kissed her fingertips. Her eyes flew open in surprise. He had never made a gesture like this in the three months they had been together. He sat bolt upright in the recliner and his feet hit the floor. My God! What was he thinking? Kissing her finger tips was a very intimate and erotic gesture. Those were not words in his vocabulary, yet they were in his mind. Where did they come from. Was he secretly thinking of sex?  Sex! Sex with a woman? Sex with Meg? He ran to the bathroom and retched. His stomach spasmed until there was nothing left to lose. He must not think like this. But if not that, then what did he want? Did he want to spend the rest of his life lying in bed with a woman and never touching her? That was not realistic. Could he do it without seeing his mother and farmer Brown from next door grunting in the kitchen.

He must think.  Yes, he must think and have a plan, but not tonight. It frightened him too much. He climbed into bed and curled into a fetal position and cried himself to sleep.

Installment #15 & #16

Installment #15

 Kevin and Greg

“Greg! You are as nervous as a cat on a hot tin roof. She is my mother, for crying out loud, not the Queen of England!” Kevin laughed as he caught Greg around the waist planted a big one near his eye. Then they both laughed. This was going to be fun. They were driving to Colorado this weekend and work was far away. This was a weekend to just cut loose and enjoy life. “Well, that is easy enough for you to say because she is your mother. What if she doesn’t like me? Have you thought of that?” Greg threw a sweater at the suitcase. “No. Why wouldn’t she like you? Besides I am going to be the one living with you, not her.” He stood behind Greg at the mirror and met his eyes. He smiled. “Damn! Don’t we make a great couple?” Then as an after thought, “ You take the wheel the first hundred miles and then we will switch. Where are we stopping for breakfast? I am already hungry.” Greg reached for the keys and picked up the suitcase with the other hand. “You did call her, didn’t you? She does know we are coming?” “Of course and she is making a big pot of Green Chile for you, white boy!  Mom is a great cook!” Kevin pulled the door shut and heard the lock catch. They hurried down the sidewalk to the drive and the car, ready for a big adventure like the overgrown kids that they were.

Installment #16

 Meg


Meg signed in to her email account and was rewarded with a note from redranger. “Meg, I have news. I will be in Denver next week and I would love to meet you.  Can you free up some time for me?”
Well, that was not at all what she expected. They had decided early in the correspondence that they would be friends and neither one wanted entanglements. Was Eldon changing the rules? She was tempted to act like she had not received the email, but then thought better of it.  Eldon was moody and knew how much time she spent on the computer. She decided that honesty was the best course in this case. So she hit the reply button.
“ Are you changing the rules? I thought this was going to be Internet Only.”
"I thought so too, but this opportunity has come up there in Denver and it seems rude to not meet you since I will be that close and I will have time on my hands. Nothing serious, just a cup of coffee on the fly. We are friends aren’t we? We have fun together on the net, we could surely have a few laughs in a coffee house.”
Meg chuckled. Of course he was right. What was she afraid of anyway? It wasn’t like it was a lifetime commitment. It was a lousy cup of coffee. “You are right. But when? My son is coming for a few days and I don’t want to run off and leave him.”
“I will be there next Thursday, the 15th and not leave until the following Wednesday. When will Kevin be there? I don’t want to step on his toes.”
 “Kevin will be here tomorrow and will leave Monday, so that is good.” She flushed at the thought of meeting a real live man. Eldon had intrigued her from the first email and now she wondered just what would be bringing him to Denver. But that would wait.
“Are you flying into Denver?”
“Sure am. Got a rental car thing so I have transportation. This is going to be great, Meg. Oh, gotta run. We will talk next week.” And he was gone.
He certainly was a man of few words. Meg headed to the kitchen to make a batch of cookies before Kevin and Greg arrived in the morning.

The pork was in the meat drawer so the Green Chile could be made in short order. She had gotten Kevin’s email and knew that Greg ran a pub and was a chef so she wanted it to be good.  It would be, but not the gourmet stuff that Greg did. She took a deep breathe and vowed that this would be a very pleasant weekend. Two days was not long, but it was all the boys could spare. It was an 14 hour drive so they would be tired. But they would split the driving so maybe not. As she emptied the last cookie sheet she realized that she was very tired . As she climbed the stairs she thought about all the bars on the windows and doors. Well, Kevin would know now. Well, not everything. She would tell him she was just getting old and wanting to feel secure. Surely he could understand that. She was living out here all alone. She suddenly remembered the tree and the perfect view that it afforded to her home. Was that just something bizarre or what? Why would anyone watch her? But her last thought as she lay in her bed before sleep over took her was not of the tree, or the path, or any of that stuff. It was of redranger and a man named Eldon that she would meet in less than a week. Sweet dreams tonight as angel wings swept over her bringing blissful sleep.

Installment #14

Installment #14

Him

He parked the Jeep Cherokee close to the cabin door. He
thought briefly what a beautiful afternoon it was and then
grabbed his Laptop, the sack, and hurried inside. Setting his
load on the table he hurried into the kitchen. He opened the
small door beside the door that led to the root cellar and peered
inside. It was dark and very quiet. He took the flash light off the
shelf and pushed the button to turn it on. Light flooded the tunnel
and he moved quickly forward. He had been in town for almost
the whole week and a lot can change in a few days. He must see.
The fruit loop who dug this for him had done a great job and he
reached the forest very quickly. He pushed sideways on the lid
that covered the opening and it slid away easily. He stepped up
the two steps into the clearing. Leaving the opening he hurried
forward to his tree. Three steps up and one over and he was in
his place.

He reached high in the branches and caught hold of the
telescope that he stored there. He put it to his eye, turned a
knob and gazed at the small farm below. Meg was just coming
out of the walk-in refrigerator. She had gathered the eggs for the
day. Oh, the joy of good luck. He watched her lithe frame as
she walked to the house. She had to be the most beautiful
woman in the world. And she was his. All his. He loved to
watch her when she did not know he was there. Something
erotic about the act and he vaguely wondered if it would be the
same when she was in his arms. A country song came to mind
“Who Are You When I’m Not Lookin?” “My oh, my you’re so
good lookin. Held together like a pair of book ends. Something
something.” Some idiot singer. He tittered to himself. Soon.
When she went into the house he surveyed the work that
had been done there while he was gone. Looked very secure.
Looks were deceiving. There was not a lock or a bar that would
keep him from her world. He would simply have her invite him
in. Yes, that was best. Just how to make it happen may prove a
challenge at first, but not an insurmountable one that was for
sure. “Where there is a will there is a way,” he thought to
himself as he felt the key that dangled from a string around his
neck. If worst came to worst, he would just unlock the door and
walk inside.

He replaced the telescope in the niche in the back of the
tree trunk and hurried down the self-made ladder to the ground.
He noticed the ground was getting a little trampled at the base of
the tree. He found a few loose branches and tossed them there.
Looked a lot better. He hurried to his tunnel, stepped inside and
twisted the cover in place. Soon he stepped out into his kitchen.

Home. Yes, Home Sweet Home.